After the first audience, we left the office and headed back to the waiting room.

　When the door was closed and the eyes of the castle's servants were gone, Garnet let out a long breath.

'Night meetings, hey. I'm not good at them, you know. It doesn't have to be all of us, does it?'

　Obviously, it's a volume of voice to be heard by those around you. It's too loud for a soliloquy.

　I immediately guessed that Garnett's purpose was to casually appeal to the other members of the group that 'I'm not going to attend that evening party,' so I naturally decided to go along with the conversation.

''Maybe. His Majesty didn't ask anyone other than me to attend, so I think it's fine if you just want to attend.
Okay. Go have fun with Alma.

　The reason why Garnett refuses to attend the evening party is because His Majesty told him to talk to his fiancée (Alma) as well.

　If Alma would attend, then inevitably Garnett would not be able to show up at the same place.

　In order not to make him feel uncomfortable about that, he's probably trying to get the groundwork done to avoid making him feel uncomfortable now.

　However, it is surprising to say the least.

　Garnett didn't even show any signs of reluctance to appear as a woman (Alma) at an evening party hosted by the royal palace, a place where many people are present and yet they are forced to attract attention, even if they don't want to.

　If he simply wanted to avoid being exposed for playing two roles, he could have decided that he couldn't participate due to inconvenience on Alma's part.

　Nonetheless, the fact that she had immediately decided to participate as her sister's Alma meant that she couldn't refuse His Majesty's invitation, or she didn't think that she really wanted to participate and--

Only those who want to join. Well, I don't think I'll want to participate. Is that okay with you?

　Following Garnett's announcement of non-participation, Ambrose also expressed his hope.

'Are you sure?　Senator Eil seems to know something about ancient magical civilizations.
My interest is in the present and the future. ─ My interest is in the present and the future. A secondhand account from the expert, Lord Hild, will be enough. You'll be in attendance, won't you?

　When Ambrose called out to him unexpectedly, Hild quickly nodded in affirmation.

''Of course. This is such a great opportunity, we can't let it slip away no matter what.''
Good. I'm looking forward to hearing about your visit. In the meantime, I have some other things I need to do.

　Currently, the participants from the White Wolf Knights are me and Hild, and the non-participants are Garnett and Ambrose.

　I was going to ask the other two for their opinions, but Mark was sitting in his chair, looking nervous and exhausted, and even if I spoke to him, he seemed doubtful that he could think and answer properly.

　Mark himself had only been present without uttering a single word, but even so, when the other party was His Majesty Alfred, the level of tension was probably too great.

　And when I turned to Chandler, without needing to ask him from us, he replied with some kind of resignation.

'I'm in. It's not a pattern, though. ...... It's the policy of the Knight Commander over at Akabane's that you should sell your face as much as possible to the center.
That guy is ...... and you're in trouble too.

　Chandler was scheduled to join us, which was three out of six.

　I'll ask Mark's opinion once I've regained my energy - and with that in mind, I was about to change out of this over-the-top outfit when there was a polite knock on the door of the waiting room.

''Excuse me. I have something for you, Luke White Wolf-sama.
'What ......?'　Come in.

　The castle's servant opened the door and bowed reverently before entering the anteroom and holding out some sealed letters to me.

''These are the invitations for today's evening party. The White Wolf Knights can accompany any number of people from the White Wolf Knights with only the top one letter. Also, the same goes for Lady Alma Argentea.
All right. So what do I do with the rest of it?
"If you have anyone you would like to invite to the evening party, please use this. Up to two people will be allowed per envelope, so please distribute them at Luke's discretion.

　In other words, it's the invitation slot in the name of the leader of the White Wolf Knights.

　If this is all there is to invite Sylvia and the others to the evening party, there is still more than enough to go around.

The first is that you can't be sure of what you're doing.　I don't need everyone from the White Wolf Knights to accompany me here.
'Yes. Master Luke will have to make his own decision.
Thank you. And one more thing, you don't think it's only nobles and knights to whom you give invitations, do you?
That's right, sir. That's right, because many members of the public are invited to this evening party. However, there are some areas that are reserved for special guests, so please be patient.

　The special invitation quota is the same as the portion prepared for me and the White Wolf Knights, the guests who received a special invitation.

　Perhaps the Duke of Kingswell and Senator Ail have also been invited in this slot, and if you're going to ask questions about a topic that you don't want others to hear about, then you should use that 'special invitation slot only' place.

　As expected of His Majesty. I'm sure you'll find that consideration and perseverance is very thorough down to the smallest detail.

　Right after the castle's servant bowed deeply and left, Garnett picked up one of the ordinary invitations and gave a troubled smile.

''So you can use this one to invite Sylvia and the others too? If that's the case, having Alma meet with those guys at the evening party sounds good.
You haven't even decided if you're going to be there yet. Just because you say you're not going to be available tonight doesn't mean you're free.
Well, that's true.

　Garnett plays with the invitation with her fingers as she spins around.

　I'm sure it's just my imagination, but looking at Garnett's profile like that, I still get the feeling that she doesn't mind meeting Sylvia and the others as Alma.

　Of course, I don't have the courage to say it out loud to confirm it.